


i waited for you all my life, hold my hand and keep me close

by orphan_account



Series: keep me by your side [4]
Category: Call Me By Your Name (2017), Call Me By Your Name - All Media Types, Call Me by Your Name - André Aciman
Genre: Anal Sex, Canon Compliant, Cuddling & Snuggling, Declarations Of Love, Endearments, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, Falling In Love, Fix-It, Fluff, Fluff and Mush, Happy Ending, Implied Sexual Content, Kissing, Love, Love Confessions, M/M, Making Love, Naked Cuddling, Pet Names, Post-Canon, Post-Canon Fix-It, Post-Coital Cuddling, Praise Kink, Protectiveness, Reunited and It Feels So Good, Romance, Safe Sane and Consensual, Size Difference, Size Kink, Summer Love, Summer Romance, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, True Love, post sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-09
Updated: 2017-11-09
Packaged: 2019-01-31 06:46:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12676551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: It was night and they were lying together on the berm, listening to the sounds of the town sleep. Elio couldn’t believe how far they had come and what had happened in the space of a year. And he was happy, scared of what the future might bring, excited and so, so very happy.“I’ve been happy here,” Oliver echoed his old words, “I think they should be: I’m happy here, with you and wherever we go next.”“Wherever we go next,” Elio repeated and then they were kissing and the woodland creatures turned away for the scene was far too intimate for another’s gaze to witness.





	i waited for you all my life, hold my hand and keep me close

**Author's Note:**

> Here's the last part, my lovelies! I hope you enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it :D 
> 
> Any mistakes are my own. I own no one.

* * *

Oliver watched as Elio’s chest rose and fell. They were still in bed together after their love making and his arms were wrapped around Elio’s smaller frame. He loved that he could hold Elio close now, he could be free and expressive with his love for the other man. A man far wiser than he would ever be. He smiled when Elio trailed fingertips up his chest.

“We’re messy,” Elio said quietly. They were lying side by side, curled into each other’s space. Elio could feel come on his skin, trickling down his leg. It was kind of hot. He blushed at the thought.

“We are,” Oliver agreed, kissing his forehead.

“What are we going to do now?” Elio asked. He sounded small again, afraid that Oliver would leave him all over again. He closed his eyes and put his face in Oliver’s neck.

“I’m going to call it off,” Oliver said, arms wrapping around Elio, bringing him in closer, tighter, “I’m with _you_. What will it take for you to trust me again?” He was sad, sad that he had caused this. And angry at himself. That he had caused Elio to worry this much.

Elio looked up at him. “I do trust you. I just don’t want to let myself believe you in case you leave again.”

Oliver kissed Elio firmly, chastely, lovingly, “well, I’m not leaving again. Unless, it’s with you or you want me to go.”

Elio shook his head, overwhelmed, “I’ll never want you to go.”

*

Oliver called his to be wife that evening. Elio’s head was in his lap and he was running his fingers through his curly locks.

“Hey,” he said, “it’s me.” Oliver took Elio’s hand and held it to his chest, while the younger man turned his face into Oliver’s stomach and hid there, hands clutching at his shirt.

Elio’s parents watched them from the other room. They approved of the match, that much was obvious and when Elio had told them that they were back together, his mother had hugged him for a good ten minutes. She had seen how upset he had been when Oliver left.

“Hey,” she replied. Her voice was soft and distant. Her name was Belle, she was a likeminded reader and loved architecture. She was a sweet woman and deserved better.

“I…” Oliver murmured and then looked down at the man in his arms. He couldn’t lose him. Regardless of what his family thought, he wanted Elio. And no one else. “I’m sorry, Belle.”

“It’s okay,” she replied after a moment. There was a smile in her voice but she was sad, Oliver could hear that. “I knew from the moment you came back home that your heart belonged to someone else, Ollie. You should be with him. Be happy.”

“Thank you Belle,” Oliver said, his voice was shaking. But he knew this was the right choice. Better than any other choice he had ever made in his life. “I’m flying home in a couple of weeks. The second book should be published when I get back, I just needed some help. Anyway, what I’m trying to say is, if you don’t want to cancel everything, leave it up to me and I’ll do it –

“No, no,” Belle cut him off, quickly. “It’s really okay Ollie. I’ve loved you and lost you. And that’s all right. We always knew this would happen. You two make way more sense than we ever did. Take care of yourself, Oliver.”

“You too, Belle.”

And then she was gone.

Oliver placed the phone back in its place and looked down at Elio. Slowly but surely, Elio withdrew, looking up at him. Oliver grinned down at him, despite fearing the judgement he would face from his parents, started tickling Elio. The elated laugh Elio let out was worth it. If he got to hear that laugh for the rest of his life, he would count himself a happy man.

“I love you,” Oliver whispered against Elio’s mouth when the latter pulled himself up on his lap.

“I love you too,” Elio replied, nuzzling his nose against Oliver’s. “Was she okay?”

Oliver nodded, “she’ll be fine.”

Elio smiled sadly, “are you sure this is what you want?” And then, “are you sure you want me?”

Oliver tightened his hold on Elio. “As sure as I am of my own damn name. I want _you_ , baby.”

Elio blushed and buried his face in Oliver’s neck. “Then, you got me.” He called him _baby_ again. He would never tire of hearing that word fall from his lips.

*

In Elio’s little town, being out like his parents’ friends, was accepted somewhat, though that did not mean hatred was never present. It was and innocent people paid the price, all for being themselves. Elio was lucky to have an accepting family, others were not so lucky. In Italy, same sex activity had been legal since 1890 but people's hatred of gay relationships (or any LGBTQ+ relationship for that matter) was at large. In the wider world, the views on LGBTQ+ relationships carried a stigma and the hatred grew strong in areas which was terrible, frustrating, upsetting and awful. Things were improving but there were large steps to take. Especially because of society's harsh, cruel and discriminating views on HIV and the way people had wrongfully named it "a gay disease". It fuelled homophobic prejudice. 

But when Elio got accepted into Yale, he was excited to move across the world and discover a new way of life. Discover the people and books and architecture, see a whole new world and take a bite for himself. He was anxious yes, about leaving the safety of home (and the safety of acceptance), but the thought of going back to the States with Oliver made his stomach flip. They would be a car drive away from each other, with Oliver now living in New York, teaching and writing at Columbia University, Elio would live on campus at Yale, and Oliver would come and visit him.

They’d worked it all out. They would make it work. They’d only be about two hours from each other and if they’d managed to find each other while living across the ocean, they could manage a commute to see each other every weekend, if not more. Elio had sorted his accommodation when he applied for a place at Yale and securing it had been a stressful experience. Regardless, by Oliver’s third week with them, Elio had everything sorted.

They spent their days, like they had, a summer ago, by the pool, riding their bikes and dancing. Except this time, without all the pain and cloak and dagger. What was awkward however, was Luke, who was still staying with them and would be returning home a week before they were set to leave.

“I don’t think Luke likes me very much,” Oliver said when the two of them were messing around in the pool, the clear water pumping out of the tap behind them.

“I don’t think he likes either of us very much,” Elio replied, teasingly. Oliver swam over to him, stepped right into his space and ducked down to plant a kiss on his lips.

“I swear he tried to sabotage my breakfast this morning,” Oliver chuckled against his lips, “you hadn’t come down for food yet and he was sitting in the chair I sit in, messing around with my eggs.”

Elio laughed, wrapping his arms around Oliver’s neck, “do you think he was trying to curse you?”

Oliver grinned, crowding Elio against the rocky wall of the outdoor pool, “can’t say I care for it much.”

He leaned down and kissed him again, this time properly until Mr. Perlman called out to them, “lovebirds, it’s time to do some work.” And then he turned with a smirk on his face and went indoors.

Oliver laughed, picking Elio up and spinning him around as best he could in the water and then when they were both giggling like school children into each other’s mouths, they melted into the water around them and kissed for a few heady, sensual moments until Elio’s father called out to them again with a laugh in his voice.

*

Oliver’s manuscript was ready and edited by the end of the week and when Luke left, Elio was suddenly reminded that in a week, he too would be leaving. It dawned on him that he would leaving behind his way of life, the people he had known for years, the places he loved. And he was frightened he’d hate it there and that he and Oliver would fall apart.

“None of those things are going to happen,” Oliver reassured him at night when Elio broke down, “I’m going to be there every step of the way. And you’re always going to be able to come home.”

“I don’t want to lose you,” Elio whispered into Oliver’s chest, playing with the hairs there. “I don’t want to go there and you realise that you’ve made a mistake.”

“You won’t lose me,” Oliver vowed, “and this is not a mistake. _You_ , of all people in my life, _were never_ and _will never_ be a mistake. I’m going to see you all the time. You’ll get sick of me.”

Elio smiled and then shook his head, “I could never get sick of you.”

It was night and they were lying together on the berm, listening to the sounds of the town sleep. Elio couldn’t believe how far they had come and what had happened in the space of a year. And he was happy, scared of what the future might bring, excited and so, so very _happy_.

“I’ve been happy here,” Oliver echoed his old words, “I think they should be: I’m happy here, with you and wherever we go next.”

“Wherever we go next,” Elio repeated and then they were kissing and the woodland creatures turned away for the scene was far too intimate for another’s gaze to witness.

*

They stood at the train station, watching it pull up. This time last year, Elio had been a mess of tears and built up sadness, watching Oliver disappear into the distance. He thought it was over then. And now, he was standing here with Oliver by his side and his parents with them. He had already said goodbye to Marzia. It had been painful, but if she was the best friend he knew she was, they would stay friends for life.

“You’ll write to us,” his father said, teary eyed. “Phone calls too. I want to know when you get there. Send us pictures too.”

“I will, I promise,” Elio found himself replying. He was crying by the time his father hugged him and his mother too. “I’m…I’m going to miss you, every day.”

“I know you are, darling. I know you are,” his mother smiled, through her tears. “Oliver will help you. Won’t he?” she looked up at him.

“Of course,” he replied, stroking Elio’s trembling back, “of course, I will.”

Elio pulled back from his parents’ arms. He felt like the tether to his home was stretching wider and wider. He would always call this place home. He would always come back and visit them and remember the places he’d been and the people he’d met. But his world, just like his heart, was expanding and he needed to move, to explore, to _be_.

Summer was drawing to a close but that didn’t mean his life was limited to its hazy days.

“I love you,” he said, tears trickling down his cheeks and onto his lips, “both of you. So much. I’ll write you every day. You’ll get sick of my letters.” He laughed despite himself.

“Never,” his father replied and hugged him again, tighter this time. “I love you too, son.” He kissed Elio’s hair and then pulled back to wipe his son’s face. “Have a safe journey, okay?”

Elio nodded and when he faced his mother, he felt as though he were a child on his first day at school. “I love you,” she said, “my darling boy. Look after him,” she said over his shoulder to Oliver who was watching the family with sad eyes.

“I will, always,” he replied, taking Elio’s and his own bags onto the carriage they were sitting in and then climbed back out to bid Elio’s parents goodbye.

“Thank you so much for everything. For helping me, for letting me stay, _again_ ,” he said, hugging them both, “I’ll write to you and we’ll call. I promise.”

“Come back and visit when Elio comes home for the winter, okay?” Lyle said, “we can celebrate together. You can tell me all your stories.”

Oliver smiled, nodding.

“Bye papa, mama,” Elio said, kissing them both on the cheek one last time before boarding the train when the whistle blew. Oliver himself, was getting a little choked up just watching them bid goodbye. And maybe it was because of what had happened the last time he stood here, how sad he had been at leaving Elio. But this time, once they boarded the train and watched as Elio’s parents faded away, Oliver knew it was entirely different.

When the sun had blurred Elio’s parents into the background, he turned and buried his face in Oliver’s chest. He did not care if anyone saw them. Small sobs shook his body and he fisted his hands in Oliver’s t-shirt.

“I didn’t think leaving them would be this hard,” Elio said, hiccupping over his words, looking up at Oliver when he was able to come out of his chest.

“I know, I know,” Oliver whispered. The carriage was empty. They were alone. He placed a chaste kiss on his lips. “But this isn’t like last time, baby. We’re together and we’ll always come back.”

“How did you know I was thinking about last time?” Elio asked. His heart felt heavy in his chest and he wanted to curl up in Oliver’s arms forever.

“Because I was too,” Oliver said sadly, “I wanted to kiss you there, take you with me. Stay, instead of leaving. Getting on that train was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. And now you’re feeling what I felt and I hate that. I wish I could take the sorrow away.”

Elio nuzzled into Oliver’s neck, tears still in his eyes. “Just being with you this time is enough.”

Oliver smiled, wrapping his arms around him. _Yeah_ , he thought. _Yeah, it really was_.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments, kudos and bookmarks are welcome! <3 What would you like to see me write next?


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